Shaquille O'Neal had 29 points and 12 rebounds and Rick Fox
scored half of his 18 points in the fourth quarter as the Los
Angeles Lakers rebounded from a pair of double-digit losses to
defeat the Indiana Pacers, 104-95.

O'Neal had 18 points by halftime, including 12 in the second
quarter, as the Lakers opened a 59-46 lead. Amid reports that
coach Del Harris is on his way out, Los Angeles led by at least
six points the rest of the way.

A running jumper by Jalen Rose had the Pacers within 89-83 with
4:16 to play, but Fox answered with a 20-footer. After
Indiana's Reggie Miller sank a free throw, Fox responded with a
backbreaking three-pointer to build the lead to 94-84 with 2:49
remaining.

Indiana got no closer than seven points the rest of the way and
had its three-game winning streak snapped, despite 24 points
from Miller. The Pacers, who were coming off a 111-103 victory
at Vancouver on Tuesday, never led and have given up over 100
points in back-to-back games for the first time this season.

Derek Fisher continued his solid play in place of injured
All-Star guard Nick Van Exel, finishing with 13 points, seven
assists and seven rebounds. Eddie Jones chipped in 18 points as
the Lakers avoided matching their longest losing streak of the
season. Los Angeles was beaten at New York, 101-89, on Sunday
before suffering a 96-86 defeat at Washington the following
night.

Rik Smits scored 19 points for the Pacers but had trouble
handling O'Neal and fouled out with 8:36 left. Smits was
limited to 15 minutes and grabbed just three rebounds as Indiana
was dominated on the boards, 42-29.

O'Neal, just a 49.6 percent foul shooter this season, made 13 of
15 from the line. Los Angeles, which leads the league in free
throws attempted per game, shot 50, hitting 37.

Back-to-back jumpers by Smits had the Pacers within 15-14 five
minutes into the game, but Jones answered with a short jumper to
spark a 13-3 run. He highlighted the spurt with a three-point
play and Fox capped it when he pulled up for a jumper on the
break for a 28-17 lead with 2:15 to go.

The Lakers scored the first six points of the second period,
sparking a 12-3 run. Fisher recorded three assists in that
burst, ending it with a layup for a 43-25 lead with 7:03
remaining.

In the final 18 seconds of the quarter, Dale Davis converted a
three-point play and Mark Jackson sank two free throws to trim
the deficit to 58-46 at halftime.

A driving layup by Chris Mullin pulled the Pacers within 72-66
with just over two minutes left in the third quarter, but the
Lakers scored eight of the final nine points of the period.
After Kobe Bryant buried a long jumper, Fisher fed O'Neal for a
dunk before hitting a three-pointer and a free throw in the
final 41 seconds to give Los Angeles an 80-67 lead.

Bryant made 9-of-14 free throws and finished with 15 points for
the Lakers, who shot 54 percent (31-of-57) from the field. Elden
Campbell, who pulled down 11 rebounds, and O'Neal blocked five
shots apiece for Los Angeles, which overcame 21 turnovers.

Indiana's Larry Bird was slapped with a technical foul late in
the third period in his first game as a coach at the Great
Western Forum, where he battled the Lakers as a player numerous
times in the NBA Finals.